


Surrender to the Light

by Raven_Knight



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-13
Updated: 2017-09-13
Packaged: 2018-12-27 08:40:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12077550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raven_Knight/pseuds/Raven_Knight
Summary: Ben Kenobi knew exactly what he was doing when he saw Luke watching his duel with Darth Vader.





	Surrender to the Light

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Star Wars. This piece, archived at Archive of Our Own (Ao3), is purely a non-commercial work of fiction from which I am not profiting in any way. This work may not be reproduced, archived, or redistributed by any means and/or in any format without prior written permission from me. Permission may be obtained by contacting me at r4v3n.kn1ght@gmail.com.

He had grown tired in his age, his body slower from the days when he’d battled and felled many opponents. His mind still held that same sharp wit as in his youth, but time had tempered it and him, cautioned him to hold his voice silent until the proper words were chosen.

His years of solitude shaped him in a way that neither time nor age on their own could accomplish. With each passing day, his light dimmed further.

But he had known such a day, such a pivotal moment would come. He’d expected it a but sooner, but now that it had arrived, he found that same knowledge difficult to endure.

For the second time in his life, Obi-Wan Kenobi crossed blades with Darth Vader.

This creature before him had nothing left of his fallen former apprentice – nothing to be seen at least. This being, encased and shrouded in black, his breathing made possible by regulated artificial lungs, had obliterated the man that had once been Anakin Skywalker, Jedi Knight. For many years following their confrontation on Mustafar, Obi-Wan struggled to understand, to reconcile that his former Padawan, so full of sarcastic wit and confident charm had twisted into the Sith he’d fought, consumed by hate and darkness. ‘The boy you trained, gone he is. Consumed by Darth Vader,’ Yoda had told him. From the moment he’d seen him on that boarding ramp when he’d arrived on Mustafar, Obi-Wan understood what Yoda had said, but he disagreed with one word. Darth Vader had not consumed Anakin.

Darth Vader had betrayed and murdered Anakin Skywalker.

He’d told Luke this, and he had not lied to the boy. Anakin was dead.

During their combat on Mustafar, Obi-Wan found nothing of his former Padawan in the eyes of his opponent. Anakin’s eyes had always shone with mischief or impatience before his betrayal. But on this reddened fiery planet, they had burned in rage and bitterness. They were not the eyes of his apprentice, of his friend.

Obi-Wan was glad that he could not see his opponent’s eyes now as their lightsabers clashed fiercely and Obi-Wan scurried back to hold Darth Vader at a neutral and ready guard stance, delaying…why precisely he did not know. The Force demanded that he not attack, that he wait, that he delay. And Obi-Wan Kenobi always listened and obeyed the commands of the Force, even when he may not understand fully the why behind the Will of the Force. A moment later, the Force’s demands became clear to him as movement caught his eye.

Luke.

A barrier he could not cross separated them. A wall impossible to cross that might as well have been a chasm. He halted, skidded to a stop, his shock and worry clear in his expression, the tension of his body, and the way his agony dawned in his eyes. Lightsabers beyond that hideous, cruel separation hummed and hissed and clashed. The boy’s mouth fell open in disbelief and horror, trying to deny to himself the reality before him.

Suddenly, everything became clear to Obi-Wan. The clouded reason behind the Force’s demands of him shined as brightly as the blue blade of his lightsaber.

His gaze found Luke’s for only a moment, unnecessarily checking that the boy was watching. He knew that in those moments, nothing could distract his focus on his mentor. Nothing short of death.

‘But not yours, Luke,’ Obi-Wan thought.

Had he looked then as Luke did now, so many years ago on Naboo trapped behind a red energy beam? Obi-Wan knew he did. He knew precisely everything Luke would feel in the next few moments. He’d lived them decades ago. _When his beloved Master, Qui-Gon Jinn, had been run through by that monster’s red blade, Qui-Gon’s physical pain had become Obi-Wan’s spiritual pain._

_That pain had become fear. Qui-Gon held the reputation of being the best skilled swordsman of the Jedi Order, and Darth Maul’s blade stole his life viciously and mercilessly in a death that Qui-Gon never deserved._

_In moments, Obi-Wan’s fear of his own death, of sharing his Master’s fate, shifted into anger. His Master would die, was dying, alone on the reflective deckplates of an isolated chamber. Where had Obi-Wan been?_ ‘Too slow,’ _he knew._ ‘Too slow and clumsy to be where I belonged at my Master’s side, defending and protecting him. How _dare_ this creature take my Master from me?’

_By the time that cursed red wall fell, so did all of Obi-Wan’s control. Hatred drove him after Darth Maul, his furious attacks and parries fueled solely by the need, the demand, that this evil creature pay for the blow that killed Obi-Wan’s Master. And in his overwhelming hatred, Obi-Wan demanded that the price be equal to what this red and black demon stole. Life._

_But Obi-Wan’s thirst for vengeance left him vulnerable. Just as he’d felt sure he’d won the upper hand and claimed ownership of their struggle, Obi-Wan fell toward Darkness. Darth Maul pushed him with a well-controlled burst of the Force and sent Obi-Wan over the edge into an abyss. Miraculously, Obi-Wan grabbed hold of a protruding Light. He dangled there, suspended between two poles of darkness, like a dim star struggling to shine and be seen between the black canvas of the night sky and the thick shroud of dark clouds._

_Obi-Wan did not wish to fall, lost forever to Darkness, nor did he wish to share his Master’s fate at the blade of the monster staring gleefully down at him as he tauntingly rained fiery sparks upon Obi-Wan. The molten metal burned his face and hands, pressuring him to give in to his pain, his fear, his anger, and his hatred until the Darkness claimed his soul as it had claimed his Master’s body._

_It was that moment, that most helpless and despairing moment, that Obi-Wan decided neither to fall nor to rise. Obi-Wan chose to fly. The snap-hiss of Qui-Gon’s green-bladed lightsaber sang with his decision as it landed in his outstretched palm, and with a single, strong blow, Obi-Wan extinguished the Dark Side. He stood above the Darkness and swore to himself that he would never falter. From that day forth, Obi-Wan Kenobi would always walk within the Light. He would not, could never, become that which had taken from him the only father he’d ever known, his friend, his mentor, his beloved Master._

‘And so history is to repeat itself,’ Obi-Wan mused, with a glance taking in Luke’s shock, agony, and fear. ‘This is the only way to ensure he walks the path he is meant to take. This is the only way Luke will never fall to the Dark Side.’ Obi-Wan turned his gaze back to Darth Vader. Slowly, Obi-Wan smiled. Then, calmly and deliberately, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi raised his blade in surrender to the Light and to his destiny.

As the red blade stole the Jedi’s life, his agonized Learner screamed, and thus sparked the Light within him to shine until it would grow to chase away the lingering Darkness.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Let me know what you think of it! 
> 
> I wanted to get this written and posted before the next film comes out and they do what I fear they’re going to do to Luke’s character. The thing about Obi-Wan and Luke is that they embody goodness, and they do not have to be tarnished or become dark in order to be compelling characters, contrary to popular storytelling methods today. What makes them compelling is that they struggle and manage to stay good and gentle despite - or in spite of - the hardships they endure. They do not break, they endure. That is a strength to admire, and something to emulate. I'm so tired of storytelling twisting good and gentle characters just for shock value and to make the characters edgy. Obi-Wan and Luke are not boring characters because they stay gentle, kind, and good. They are the type of characters that represent hope and goodness. To twist them into anything otherwise destroys their characters, and that is a very upsetting prospect. Thank you for indulging me in this commentary. I hope you enjoyed the above story. ~ RK


End file.
